Expedition 27 crew successfully returns to Earth

Wednesday, May 25, 2011

The Expedition 27 crew returned to Earth safely from the International Space Station (ISS) yesterday. The crew landed in Kazakhstan aboard the Soyuz TMA-20 spacecraft, the same craft they launched on last December.

The crew, consisting of commander Dmitri Kondratyev and flight engineers Catherine Coleman and Paolo Nespoli, spent approximately five months in space aboard the ISS.

After landing, recovery teams helped the crew exit their Soyuz capsule and adjust to surface gravity again. While Kondratyev returned to the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center, Coleman and Nespoli returned to Houston, Texas.

While in space the crew worked on over 150 microgravity experiments and saw the arrival of several spacecraft: a Japanese H-II Transfer Vehicle, two Russian Progress cargo ships, the European Johannes Kepler ATV and the space shuttles Discovery and Endeavour on their final flights.

This was Russian cosmonaut and commander Dimitri Kondratyev’s first spaceflight, the third for NASA astronaut Catherine Coleman, and the second for European Space Agency astronaut Paolo Nespoli.

The crew of STS-134 and Expedition 28 remain aboard the ISS. Three new crew members are expected to launch on June 7 to join their colleagues aboard the orbital outpost.

Retrieved from “https://en.wikinews.org/w/index.php?title=Expedition_27_crew_successfully_returns_to_Earth&oldid=4581345”

Sex, mental and physical exercise, fight dementia

Friday, April 8, 2005Professor Perry Bartlett of University of Queensland‘s Brain Institute recommends sex, cryptic crosswords and a good run to stave off dementia.

The researcher, interviewed on Australian ABC radio today [1], said that with 52,000 Australians expected to be diagnosed with dementia by the end of the year, people wishing to ward off the degenerative disorder may benefit from activities which stimulate growth of new cells in the brain, accompanied by mental exercise to select for survival of the resulting crop of new cells.

“Quite prolonged exercise is very good to make new neurones,” said the Professor. “These new nerve cells are really quite vital to our ability to function in the higher brain functions, such as memory and learning. Most of them die. We now know that we can preserve some of them by giving direct stimuli.”

Professor Bartlett explained recent research findings, including those from collaborator Jeffrey D. Macklis [2] at Harvard in the US.

“There are a lot of hormones and changes in blood that go up and down after exercise, and so that may be a lead to some of the chemicals that can drive the production of nerve cells.

“One of the chemicals that seems to promote neurogenesis is prolactin, and prolactin levels are very high in pregnant females. Prolactin levels, by the way, also go up during sex as well. So one could think of a number of more entertaining activities than running in order to regulate the production of nerve cells.

“Perhaps doing something a little more inquisitive or intellectual might be good at selecting their survival. So perhaps one should run a long distance and do the cryptic crossword or something like that,” he said.

Professor Bartlett gave the same suggestions as being potentially helpful in depression, last year in an interview on the ABC Science Show. [3]

Retrieved from “https://en.wikinews.org/w/index.php?title=Sex,_mental_and_physical_exercise,_fight_dementia&oldid=1887108”

Tips For Buying A Caravan In Australia

Tips for Buying a Caravan in Australia

by

BobSmith

Australia is a great place for vacationing and has diverse exotic leisure options tot make your holiday perfect. Whether you want to enjoy an action packed holiday or some leisure time, Australia can give you the best holiday of your life. The immense land of Australia is loaded with natural wealth and natural sceneries with exotic plant and animal life dotting the land. What can be a better way to tour this piece of nature’s art than using a caravan? Caravans are the most ideal way to go about touring Australia. Besides getting you close to nature, caravans are also easy on your funds as they cut down expensive accommodation costs. Why go to expensive hotels when you can get luxury, comfort and more right in your very own caravan?

When buying a caravan, you have to put in a lot of time and effort choosing the right caravan for your needs. However, purchasing a caravan is not as daunting as many perceive it to be. If you just keep in mind some of the important things to consider while buying a caravan and focus on finding one with the features you want, you are sure to enjoy your vacation in Australia with a caravan that answers your every need.

Here a few considerations and tips that you have to keep in mind when purchasing your caravan.

The Main Use Of A Caravan:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=23VuA6ggbRU[/youtube]

This is one of the main considerations. Of course, you will very well know the main application of the caravan before you buy it. The kind of caravan depends on whether you are planning for a long holiday through the length and breadth of Australia or a simple weekend getaway. Also the number of people who will be accommodating the caravan and their ages also matter. Knowing your purpose for buying the caravan will narrow down the configurations of caravans you will be considering for purchase.

The Size Of The Caravan:

Once you know the use of the caravan, it should be easy to determine its size. The most popular caravans ideally have lengths between 11 Ft and 24 ft. Caravans smaller than 11 ft will only fit one person comfortably while caravans longer than 24 Ft are difficult to get around in.

Research and Compare:

Do a little research and compare caravans before buying them. Caravan shows are the most ideal places to see different models, makes and decide which model suits you the best.

Basic Construction Of The Caravan:

Investigate the caravan carefully before making a purchase. Make sure that the caravan is not merely stapled, but also glued. Ensure that the cupboards and bed base frames are firmly supported and that their joints are well secured. Check that the caravan is well sealed and paneling is fastened well to surfaces.

Electrical aspects:

Check that the 12 volt refrigerator wiring is intact. The fridge should have proper ventilation. In case of wires passing through the chassis, make sure they are insulated with grommets. The brake wire has to be properly connected and should not be pinched by suspension.

WeLoveCountry is one of the most popular authorities in

caravan parks

. The main responsibility the CRVA undertakes is facilitating a national accreditation program for industry businesses including caravan parks,

camper trailer

manufacturers, retailers of industry products and suppliers of goods and services.

Article Source:

ArticleRich.com

Australian carbon tax plans hit road block

Sunday, April 17, 2011

Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard’s plans to implement a carbon tax in Australia have hit a roadblock today with the national secretary of the Australian Workers Union Paul Howes demanding that exemptions be made to certain heavy polluting industries including steel production as well as concerns about whether jobs will be lost.

Steel producing companies within Australia including BlueScope Steel and OneSteel have supported the move by the union claiming that a carbon tax would affect Australian Jobs. Paul O’Malley, managing director and Chief Executive of BlueScope, said that “the tax threat is still real for the Australian Steel industry and for our customers.”

Paul Howes told The Australian newspaper that “if one job is gone, our support is gone.” Mr. Howes is a powerful figure within the Australian Labor Party who is believed to have been instrumental with the removal of PM Gillard’s predecessor Kevin Rudd. Support for the Gillard Labor Government has dropped to an all time low earlier this year, with only a 30% approval rating.

The move by the AWU has been supported by other unions in Australia, including the Transport Workers Union as well as Opposition Leader Tony Abbott.

Retrieved from “https://en.wikinews.org/w/index.php?title=Australian_carbon_tax_plans_hit_road_block&oldid=1220682”

Astronomer tells Wikinews about discovery of closest black hole known so far

Friday, May 22, 2020

A study published in journal Astronomy & Astrophysics last month reported astronomers from the European Southern Observatory (ESO) and elsewhere discovered a black hole in the Telescopium constellation. The study stated the black hole is about 1010 ± 195 light years (310 ± 60 parsec) away from the Solar System, meaning it is the nearest known black hole from the Earth. The nearest previously known black hole — V616 Mon — the study noted was usually estimated at more than 3000 light years away.

The black hole described in the study is located in the HR 6819 stellar system of Telescopium constellation, making it the first system visible to the naked eye to contain a black hole. HR 6819 contains two stars, and they are visible from the Southern Hemisphere. The astronomers started observing the system in 1999. Initially, they thought it was just a binary system, consisting of two stars. However, upon examination, the researchers concluded there was a third unseen object in the system. One of the two stars in the HR 6819 system is close to the black hole and orbits the black hole in just 40.333 ± 0.004 days.

This newly discovered black hole does not have an accretion disk. A black hole forms an accretion disk when a significant amount of matter orbits the black hole, as depicted in the image. Accretion disks often emit electromagnetic radiation. Since this black hole does not have an accretion disk, researchers had to rely on the gravitational effect of the black hole on the nearby star in order to discover it.

Researchers used the binary mass function to conclude the black hole had a mass of at least 4.2 M? (Solar masses; 1 Solar mass = mass of the Sun). Its companion star, which orbits the black hole in about 40 days, is classified as a B3 III star. The outer star is classified as a Be star. Be stars rotate very quickly around their axes. Since the outer star rotates so rapidly, the star is not exactly spherical, but instead oblate, bulged at its equator, forming a gas disk around the equator.

The research suggested HR 6819 was very similar to another system LB-1. The HR 6819 system is estimated to be between 15–75 million years old (myr). The inner star has estimated mass of at least 6.3 ± 0.7 M?. Using the mass and the speed at which the inner star rotates, the researchers concluded the black hole had an estimated mass of 5.0 ± 0.4 M?. Researcher and co-author of the study Thomas Rivinius told Wikinews the inner star and the black hole are closer than the Sun and the Earth (1au; 150 million km; 93 million miles).

The researchers dedicated the paper to Stanislav Štefl, one of the fellow researchers who died in a car accident in 2014 in Santiago, Chile.

Wikinews caught up with Thomas Rivinius to discuss about this discovery.

Retrieved from “https://en.wikinews.org/w/index.php?title=Astronomer_tells_Wikinews_about_discovery_of_closest_black_hole_known_so_far&oldid=4583917”

Email Marketing For Restaurants

Email Marketing For Restaurants

by

RBurko

Email marketing is quite clearly the best marketing technique for restaurants of all types. Whether your restaurant is fast-food, fine-dining or anything in the middle, you can profit greatly from email marketing’s minimal pricing structure and highly effective targeting.

Announcing a new special menu selection? Need to get the word out about seasonal menu changes? Want to notify people about new hours, send out preferred customer coupons, or just bring people into your restaurant? Email marketing will create a line of communication with your customers so you can achieve these goals.

The restaurant industry competition is ferocious (not really earth shattering news!). Therefore breaking through the clutter of marketing messages to get your voice heard is quite challenging. Email marketing changes that for you because you can directly contact each customer. You have the choice to personalize the email to say “Hello Linda” (Doug, or Sally) automatically. This creates a relationship with your customers and maintains that your name/brand is in their mind. However before you get started, you’ll need to generate a list of customer to email to.

Build Your Mailing List > It All Starts Here!

The skeleton of your email marketing strategy is your mailing list. It is so of the utmost importance to have a high quality mailing list that is continuously growing. There is no ‘quick-fix’ to building a large contact database, and it especially won’t be done overnight. No need to worry with the restaurant industry, as it is the perfect setting to capture new emails, so you can expect pretty rapid growth.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ETvn8-cGahc[/youtube]

Here are several well known steps that restaurant operators use to grow their email marketing mailing list:

– Place a “Signup Form” at the cash register so as people pay they will fill out their name and email address to be added to your email contact list. This tactic is made more effective if the cashier is instructed to prompt customers to sign up while processing payment.

– Have comment cards on each table. In addition to gathering feedback about your customers’ dining experiences, request their email address.

– You can also have your servers get the customer’s email addresses when delivering the check. You can even add extra motivation for your serving staff if there is some incentive for the server who collects the most email addresses.

– Provide a contest and have customers write their email address on the ticket/ballot. The prize can be a free desert, free meal, or any other prize that you think will entice people to enter.

Any one of these methods will work for you, the only thing you have to do is to communicate to the customer that they will receive occasional emails from you. You definitely don’t want to send emails to your customers if they don’t want them. That’s considered spam, and that is absolutely something you do not want to do. Not only is it no legal, it will also alienate your customers.

Your List is Built, It’s Time to Start Sending Emails > Be Imaginative!

Once you have a high quality mailing list, you have to get some good use out of it. There are so many of different ways that restaurants can use email marketing and with a little creative thinking you can definitely generate new ingenious ways to reach your customers.

A great initial step is to determine what your ultimate goal is. Do you want to drive people into your restaurant for breakfast, lunch, or dinner? Do you want more people to call to make reservations? Are you trying to increase your delivery or take-out business? I could go on. But, once you know what your goal is, you can send out emails that will help achieve that objective.

There are plenty of things that you can do with email marketing. The possibilities are endless. Keep in mind that with a little bit of testing, you can figure out what works the best for your restaurant, which contests promotions, etc will get you the desired results.

Robert Burko is President of Elite Email, the trusted

email marketing

service provider used by restaurants around the globe. Start harnessing the power of email marketing solutions for your organization with a no risk trial. Get more valuable tips for your restaurant by reading

Robert Burko’s Blog

.

Article Source:

ArticleRich.com

Ontario Votes 2007: Interview with Communist Party candidate Johan Boyden, Toronto Centre

Friday, October 5, 2007

Johan Boyden is running for the Communist Party in the Ontario provincial election, in the Toronto Centre riding. Wikinews interviewed him regarding his values, his experience, and his campaign.

Retrieved from “https://en.wikinews.org/w/index.php?title=Ontario_Votes_2007:_Interview_with_Communist_Party_candidate_Johan_Boyden,_Toronto_Centre&oldid=1838596”

Commonwealth Bank of Australia CEO apologies for financial planning scandal

Thursday, July 3, 2014

Ian Narev, the CEO of the Commonwealth Bank of Australia, this morning “unreservedly” apologised to clients who lost money in a scandal involving the bank’s financial planning services arm.

Last week, a Senate enquiry found financial advisers from the Commonwealth Bank had made high-risk investments of clients’ money without the clients’ permission, resulting in hundreds of millions of dollars lost. The Senate enquiry called for a Royal Commission into the bank, and the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC).

Mr Narev stated the bank’s performance in providing financial advice was “unacceptable”, and the bank was launching a scheme to compensate clients who lost money due to the planners’ actions.

In a statement Mr Narev said, “Poor advice provided by some of our advisers between 2003 and 2012 caused financial loss and distress and I am truly sorry for that. […] There have been changes in management, structure and culture. We have also invested in new systems, implemented new processes, enhanced adviser supervision and improved training.”

An investigation by Fairfax Media instigated the Senate inquiry into the Commonwealth Bank’s financial planning division and ASIC.

Whistleblower Jeff Morris, who reported the misconduct of the bank to ASIC six years ago, said in an article for The Sydney Morning Herald that neither the bank nor ASIC should be in control of the compensation program.

Retrieved from “https://en.wikinews.org/w/index.php?title=Commonwealth_Bank_of_Australia_CEO_apologies_for_financial_planning_scandal&oldid=3869292”

Hair Transplant Is A Fast Growing Occupation In India

Hair Transplant Is a Fast Growing Occupation in India

by

Aarnav Gupta

People are more concerned about their looks than anything else today. The importance of hair to improve the facial expression cannot be undermined. Hair bring youthful look to the face and make it more attractive and appealing. Hair transplant is the part of cosmetic surgery and is gaining much popularity these days. The growing demand of good facial expressions has raised the demand of talented and trained hair transplant surgeons in India these days.

Many of the cosmetic surgeons are diverting to hair transplant surgeries or adding it to their services because of raising demand from consumers. There are many hair sciences centers in the country offering complete training to the doctors and even assisting them in establishing their own hair transplant clinics in India. Besides the techniques, the participants are taught everything that they need to conduct their practice successfully. The courses are designed with the professional excellence in mind and enable the participants to start their own practice immediate after completion of the course with full confidence. The courses include FUE training, training for surgeons, and other hair restoration treatments.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0KDnqw3c32U[/youtube]

Training is provided under the expert supervision of highly qualified and experienced specialists. Participants are taught the most popular 500-graft Follicular Unit Transplantation or FUE method. This technique is performed with the help of high-tech automatic Roto-motor technique. This training is often provided to qualified doctors i.e. MBBA and BDS only. However there are some other courses provided to train assistants and staff members of the clinics such as BAMS/ BHMS/ Nurses and assistants of cosmetologists. Usually the courses are of 3 days duration and may cost something near about USD 3500, however the duration and time limit might vary per training centers. These institutes also offer customized training programs on demand and charges would depend upon the requirement.

Some of the training centers in India encourage the participating doctors to bring a fellow technician along in the training program. This way the doctors can easily understand a technicians role during the surgery and the assisting technician can also learn what is expected of him and how to perform to the best desired level. The assisting technicians are taught the entire graft harvesting procedure, slivering graft preparation, and insertion. They are also trained how to look after the patients before and after the surgery.

FUE procedure is one of the most advanced technologies available in hair transplant industry today. It is taught at only few places in India. There are several training centre in Chandigarh which have gained much popularity recently because of their state-of-the-art infrastructure, and visiting trainers from the developed countries like US and UK. These institutes have gained popularity not only in India but globally in fact as many of their participants come from several other countries, mainly from USA, Canada, Brazil, Europe and Australia.

If you are a qualified cosmetologist, MBBS, BDS and want to make a positive difference to your practice, think of adding hair transplant and hair restoration procedures to your services and you can reap good benefits for ever.

Dr Tejinder Bhatti is an accomplished plastic surgeon. For further information please visit

fue hair transplant training

and

hair transplant course

.

Article Source:

ArticleRich.com

Iranian International Master Dorsa Derakhshani discusses her chess career with Wikinews

Tuesday, April 14, 2020

In February 2017, the Iranian Chess Federation announced two teenage chess players, Dorsa Derakhshani and her younger brother Borna Derakhshani, were banned from representing the national team. The federation announced their decision although Dorsa Derakhshani had previously decided and informed the chess federation she did not wish to play for Iran.

Dorsa Derakhshani is currently 21 years old and holds the International Master (IM) as well as Woman Grand Master (WGM) titles. Her brother, Borna, plays for the English Federation and holds the FIDE Master title.

Dorsa Derakhshani was banned since she did not wear a hijab, an Islamic headscarf, while competing at the Tradewise Gibraltar Chess Festival in January 2017. Under the laws of Islamic Republic of Iran, hijab is a mandatory dress code. Her brother Borna Deraskhsani was banned for playing against Israeli Grand Master (GM) Alexander Huzman at the same tournament. Iran does not recognise the existence of Israel, and previously, Irani athletes have avoided playing against Israeli athletes.

Mehrdad Pahlavanzadeh, the president of the country’s chess federation, explained the decision to ban the players saying, “As a first step, these two will be denied entry to all tournaments taking place in Iran and in the name of Iran, they will no longer be allowed the opportunity to be present on the national team.” ((fa))Farsi language: ?????? ????? ?? ??? ??? ?? ??? ????? ?? ?? ???? ???????? ?? ?? ????? ? ?? ??? ????? ?????? ??????? ????? ??????? ? ???? ???? ???? ?? ??? ??? ?? ??????? ????. He further stated, “Unfortunately, something that should not have happened has happened and our national interest is paramount and we have reported this position to the Ministry of Sports.” ((fa))Farsi language: ????????? ?????? ?? ????? ????????? ?????? ??? ? ????? ??? ?? ?? ?? ???? ?????? ???? ? ?? ??? ???? ?? ?? ????? ???? ?? ????? ?????.

IM Dorsa Derakhshani, who currently studies at Saint Louis University in the United States and plays for the United States Chess Federation, discussed her chess career, time in Iran and the 2017 controversy, and her life in Saint Louis with a Wikinews correspondent.

Retrieved from “https://en.wikinews.org/w/index.php?title=Iranian_International_Master_Dorsa_Derakhshani_discusses_her_chess_career_with_Wikinews&oldid=4583918”